Chapter 3

To avoid running into her, the next day I walked over ten kilometers and set up my stall somewhere else.

I didn’t expect Mara to show up again with a whole crowd in tow.

This time, several influencers had come too, cameras rolling as they livestreamed, ready to capture the moment she ate the fortune cookie and got pregnant on the spot.

Mara dropped to her knees in front of me, clutching her late husband’s memorial portrait.

"Rainie, if this still isn’t enough, I can take out a loan! Whatever you want, just give me a fortune cookie. I’ll do anything for you, I swear!"

Someone in the crowd shouted that I was just trying to go viral, chasing attention and traffic.

I shot back immediately, "Even if I don’t make a single cent, I still won’t sell to her. If you feel so sorry for her, go have a kid with her yourself. And let me give you some advice: don’t get tangled up in someone else’s karma, or you’ll end up in serious trouble."

At this point, people weren’t even focused on Mara buying a fortune cookie anymore. They were fixated on one thing—why I refused to sell to her.

Someone speculated that I had been arrested before, and that I was deliberately refusing to sell to a police officer’s widow.

They looked into my record. It came up completely clean. No criminal history at all.

Still unwilling to accept it, people started making things up.

They said I was a fraud and that the fortune cookie was fake, that all the pregnancies were staged, and that I was too scared of being arrested to sell to Mara.

An elderly woman suddenly snatched a piece of fortune cookie straight out of my hand.

"I think this is all a scam! Something that costs a few dollars to make is being sold for a ridiculous price. This whole pregnancy thing is obviously fake!"

I didn’t even have time to stop her before she stuffed the entire fortune cookie into her mouth.

"It’s just a regular fortune cookie. How could it possibly make someone preg—ugh!" She suddenly clamped a hand over her mouth and gagged violently.

A medic pushed through the crowd and quickly examined her. "She’s pregnant. That nausea you just had… That’s morning sickness."

The elderly woman’s face turned deathly pale. "That’s impossible… I’m 70 years old. How could I be pregnant? Ugh—"

Her eyes rolled back, and she fainted on the spot. Others quickly carried her away.

The crowd grew even more confused.

"If your fortune cookies really work, and you’re not some snob, and you don’t have a criminal record, then why won’t you sell to Mara?"

Seeing how stubborn I was, some people began to sense something was off and turned to look at Mara.

"Mara, did you do something to Rainie before? We all know Rainie. She’s not someone who would make things difficult for no reason."

"Rainie keeps saying you’re not worthy. Did you do something bad? Something that would bring punishment down on you?"

"I…"

Under everyone’s gaze, Mara’s face went pale, her expression filled with sorrow.

At that moment, someone from the livestream audience suddenly spoke up, righteous and loud, "Mara, you don’t have to beg like this. You helped her before. Honestly, she should be making you 100 fortune cookies, and it still wouldn’t be enough!"

"What?"

"Back then, you used your own money to sponsor several students from the mountains. One of them was her—Rainie Larkin. She used to go by a different name."

The commenter pulled up a sponsorship list, pointing to my name and photo.

Mara’s eyes lit up. "It really is you…?"

I fell silent for a moment. "I was one of those kids from the mountains. Eight years ago, someone anonymously funded my education. They helped me get out."

The commenter sneered. "That someone was Mara! Without her, you would’ve been sold off to some old bachelor by now. And this is how you repay her? You won’t even give her a single fortune cookie? That’s beyond heartless!"

The entire situation flipped in an instant. Now, everyone pitied Mara even more. The way they looked at me was practically venomous.

Nevertheless, I still didn’t waver.

"She cannot eat my fortune cookie. Not only will she fail to get pregnant, but something terrible will happen. I’m refusing her for everyone’s sake."

As for what that terrible thing was, I refused to say.

Mara suddenly dropped to her knees again, trembling with emotion. "Rainie, please. I don’t know why you hate me so much, but your fortune cookie is the only thing in this world that can help me get pregnant. I’m begging you. Please, will that be enough?"

She grovelled to me menially, slamming her forehead against the ground, so hard that blood began to appear.

I didn’t react.

I just stood there, letting her keep going until she finally collapsed and lost consciousness.